Power of the Serpent
by writersoftheuniverse
Summary: Earl James Arrlington, the Queen's serpent. They are sent a letter from Her Royal Majesty, Queen Victory, to eliminate Jack the Ripper. What happens when James realizes they've met Ciel before. Back during that month...
1. Prologue

_Prologue_

Dark green eyes skimmed over the room. It was the room to of a child, a little girl at that. There was a pink dress laid out on the armchair. The covers were untouched, as if someone was getting ready to go to bed. There was a small, brown bear that was placed directly in the middle of the bed. Aside from a layer of dust that began to settle, the room looked lived in. Like a child was going to run into the room any second, followed by her father who was going to tell her a bedtime story.

A young child, barely 9 years old, sighed. The child turned to their butler. "I want this room destroyed. Ever last item in that room. The child in that room is long gone. It has no place in the estate of an Earl. Is that understood?"

The butler bowed. "Yes, my lady," he said in a calm voice.

"No," the child said darkly. "You will refer to me as your lord and master, nothing else. Rose Arrlington is dead. You serve Earl James Arrlington. You will protect me with your life, and follow my every command until the day I die. You will always tell the truth, and you will never act on your own accord unless I say you will do so." She gave the room one last glance, trying to keep her composure. "Come to my study once your job is complete." They turned around and walked away.

* * *

 _Rose Alice Arrlington was an energetic child. She had long, blonde hair that she prized. She loved it when her mother would make their hair match. Although, she could never convince her mother to let them wear matching dresses. As much as she loved the pretty dresses that Miss Nina would make for her, she wanted to match her mother more that anything._

 _She had a twin brother named James Daniel Arrlington. They were very similar in appearance, except James had a few freckles here and there. Obviously, his hair was much shorter. In contrast to Rose's personality, James was a very shy boy. Guests were often very surprised when Rose was the one speaking up instead of James. Rose would often refuse to leave her brother's side._

 _Her mother, Alice Arrlington, was a small woman with dirty blonde hair and beautiful blue eyes. She had the kindest smile in the world, in Rose's eyes._

 _Her father, Daniel Arrlington, was the opposite when it came to height. He was almost 30 centimeters taller than Alice, which made piggyback rides even more fun for Rose. He had light blond hair and green eyes_

 _Both her mother and father were kind people. Her father would tell them both stories, and he would teach James how to hunt. Their mother_

 _Rose had a fiancé as well. When she was older, she was to be wed to Edward Midford. Alice and James always looked forward to when the Midfords visited. They had began to see the Midfords like family._

 _Everything was perfect._

 _Until that night._

 _Rose frowned as she got out of her bed. Her father said that he would be there in five minutes to tell them a story. Five minutes had turned into ten, and ten into twenty. Had they fallen asleep?_

 _She went to James' bed to wake him up. "James! James!" She shook him._

 _James blinked slowly at her. "Rose? What is it?"_

 _"Father should be here by now, right?" she asked. "He said he would be here fifteen minutes ago... Do you think they just fell asleep?"_

 _He nodded. "I think so... Do you want to wake them up?"_

 _She nodded. "Yes, James... Can you come with me?" She held out her hand._

 _James took her hand and walked with her to their parents' room._

 _"Father?" Rose called as they walked. When they approached the door, she stepped in a strange liquid. She looked down, screaming when she saw it. "James! James, what is that?!"_

 _James' eyes widened as he tried to stay calm for the sake of his sister. "I-I don't know..." But, of course he knew. It was blood. And the blood was coming from under their parents' door._

 _"M-Mother? F-Father?" Rose whimpered, creaking open the door. Her mother was lying down in front of the door, her throat slit. Her father was hanging from the ceiling. Neither child had time to shriek when a cloth covered both of their mouths, knocking them out._

* * *

 _Rose awoke in a cage. A cage with 57 bars, she would learn after counting them 1227 times (which she counted as well). There were three other children in the cage with her. Her brother, a small boy with dark blue hair, and a girl with short brown hair and brown eyes. The both boys was unconscious and the girl was awake, shaking._

 _"Where am I?" Rose mumbled, her voice hoarse. "Where are my mother and father?" she asked groggily, refusing to believe the memories of the last few hours._

 _The girl looked down at her sadly. "I don't know the answers to either of those questions, I'm sorry." She sighed. "But your parents are probably-"_

 _There was the sound of a door opening. There was a man wearing a hood. He opened the door to the cage. "Stay back," he ordered the other girl. He grabbed Rose by her hair. "This is gonna be a pain in the arse."_

 _Rose screamed from how hard he was pulling. "Let me go!" she shouted, beginning to sob. "I want to go home! Let go!"_

 _He brought her to a dark room. "Every time you even attempt to escape, I cut a finger off, you damn brat." Rose nodded, trying not to whimper, as he took out a pair of scissors. Her eyes widened when she realized what he was doing. Her beautiful hair... She bit her lip as he cut it off. "I don't get why they want you in the first place," he muttered._

 _When he was finished, he dragged her by her short hair, which was even more painful than the last time._

 _She was flung back into the cage, shaking. The boy and her brother had awoken, and he looked just as scared as she was. The four didn't say anything for as long as there was someone watching them._

 _Once they were alone, Rose looked around the room, still on the verge of tears. She had realized just how many cages there were. She counted 23 cages, each with four children inside of them._

 _When the other children realized they were alone, the room was filled with sobs. Children crying out for their parents, declaring that they wanted to go home._

 _Rose glanced at her brother then looked at the other two children nervously. James spoke for her, for the first time in their lives. "I-I'm James Arrlington. This is my sister, Rose."_

 _The girl smiled weakly. "I'm Penelope Alexander."_

 _They both looked at the boy, who was shaking. He hadn't said a word until, "C-Ciel. My name is Ciel Phantomhive."_

* * *

 **What do you think? This is only the prologue, so I'm hoping it'll get better as it goes along. Reviews always help!**


	2. Meeting Again

**Note: I will be referring to Rose as James, but with she pronouns, because although she changed her name, she still identifies as a girl. In the flashbacks, she will be referred to as Rose. I am sorry if that is confusing**

Chapter 1: Meeting Again

 **-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-**

"What is your wish?"

"Get it over with!"

"Kill them all!"

 **-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-**

Three years later, James Arrlington woke with a start. She checked the time. 1:00. It must have been a nightmare again. Although she wanted to claim that she didn't suffer from such childish things like nightmares, they still plagued her sleep, no matter what had happened the previous day.

She would try to convince herself that she wasn't scared. That the contract looming over her between her and Alexavier, the demon posing as her butler, didn't terrify her. She was very good at hiding it, though. The Queen's serpent didn't get scared. No Arrlington noble was weak.

She rolled up her sleeve and looked at her arm. There it was, the red seal that saved her life and damned her at the same time. It served as a constant reminder of her choice, and the unpredictability of it. Her revenge could come in a week, or in several years. She knew Alexavier could sense her fear, but he was ordered not to comment on it.

Alice and Daniel would have been disgusted with her. James... She didn't even want to think about what he would've thought. She took on his identity just for her own gain. She sold her soul for revenge, which her mother always looked down upon. However, she had stopped caring. This wasn't for their sake anymore, it was for her own. If she was to be the last of her family name, she was going to make sure the name died respected.

She stared up at the ceiling. Sometimes, being alone with her thoughts was nice. She could act as childish as she wanted, and there would be no consequences. If she ordered Alexavier to stay out and keep the other servants out as well, she could spin around the room in some of her mothers' old dresses. She could sing herself a soft lullaby, and there would be no nobles that could stop her.

But, she knew that those were just futile attempts to bring back the happiness she had lost all those years ago. No childish sessions could change what had happened during that month. It couldn't take away the brand, and it couldn't take away the contract.

There was just no point.

 **-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-**

The next afternoon, James was working in her study. The paperwork was so damn annoying, but it was a necessary evil. It was the only way she could keep the Arrington company going. Arrlington specialized in textiles for all ages.

There was a knock on her door. "Come in, Alexavier."

Her butler, a man with an average height, platinum blond hair, and silver eyes. "A letter from Her Royal Majesty, my lord." He handed her the letter.

She skimmed over the letter. "Jack the Ripper..." she mumbled, trying to think of all the gruesome deaths he must have caused to be given a name like that. Her eyes widened when she saw the sentence, 'I have already sent a letter to my watch dog, Ciel Phantomhive. I was hoping that you two would work together to eliminate this threat.' Ciel Phantomhive... She remembered that name. She knew she would have to meet him one day, but she never thought that it would be so soon since her escape. Hopefully, he forgot all about James and Rose. She looked up at Alexavier. "Organize a meeting with Lord Phantomhive, preferably in about a week. I want to get this job over with. You know that I hate working with other people."

Alexavier smirked, his eyes flashing a deep red before turning back to the normal silver color. "Is this 'the' Earl Phantomhive, my lord? The one from-"

She growled. "Yes, it is." She stood up, looking up at her butler. "And you are to make sure that he does not figure out who that I was once Rose Arrlington. That is an order!"

The butler bowed. "Yes, my Lord." He left the room in a flash.

She thought about Ciel, and tried to remember him. Wide blue eyes... dark blue hair, and he was so frail when they last saw each other. Everyone was, but it was the most obvious on Ciel's already small figure.

 **-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-**

 _"They took Penelope..." Rose mumbled, holding onto the bars of the cage tightly. "They took Penelope and they're going to take us too." She sniffed and looked at Ciel, holding onto James tightly. "I'm so scared," she whimpered. "I want to go home."_

 _Ciel brought his knees to his chest. "Someone's going find us. They have to..." he mumbled. Despite having lost hope himself, he tried to hide that fact from the both of them._

 _"Ciel?" Rose turned around and looked at him. "If we ever get out of here..." She hiccuped. "Can you live with us? James and I are going to be all alone..."_

 _The boy smiled weakly, although tears were threatening to escape. "Yes, that sounds-"_

 _There was a bright light, signaling that the doors had opened again. Rose hid her face, hoping she wasn't going to be picked. Of course, her efforts were in vain. The cage door was opened, and Rose and James were dragged out by their hair, once again. Before they could shout, the man covered their mouths with a cloth, which must have been covered with the same stuff that the cloth from that night was. "Looks like we got a buyer for you brats after all." They fell unconscious, not knowing the horrors that would await them._

 **-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-**

A week later, James was awoken by Alexavier. "Good morning, my Lord. I must inform you that the meeting's location has changed. You will be meeting with Lord Phantomhive in his London home."

She pursed her lips. "Of course. It is the social season after all. It is only a matter of time before I must be dragged out to London as well." She sat up, yawning and stretching her arms.

"Do you need me to change your bandages for you?"

"I changed the ones around my chest last night. Fix the ones around my arm," she ordered and lifted up the arm which held the contract's seal.

He nodded. "Yes, my lord." He took the bandages that were put on her dresser and wrapped them around the contract seal. It was firm enough to stay in place, but not tight enough to make it impossible to tear off.

"Prepare a carriage to the Phantomhive Manor. I will meet you in the foyer once I am dressed." She stood up, completely putting on her nobleman persona. The only time she allowed herself to ever be vulnerable was when she was waking up. Even in the face of death, she will still act and die like a nobleman.

Her butler bowed once again and left the room.

James dressed herself, first making sure that the bandages binding her chest were in place. She slicked back her hair. "Damn," she mumbled. "I'm going to have to get a trim. This is almost getting to hard to manage." She looked herself over once more, she left the room to meet Alexavier.

 **-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-**

The carriage stopped in front of the large home. Alexavier opened the door for James and she stepped out. Almost as soon as both she and her butler reached the entrance, the door to the house opened. A man clad in all black with red eyes was holding the door opened. "Welcome, Lord Arrlington. My apologies for our current state, we had some unexpected guests."

What could he mean by that? she thought to herself. The two were lead into the main room, where four people were sitting. There was a woman entirely dressed in red, with both red hair and red eyes to match. There was also a Chinese man with short black hair and tan skin. The next man was obviously a butler, but he seemed rather nervous. He had long brown hair tied back in red bow with a few strands that were loose. The final person in that room was none other than Ciel Phantomhive. The boy she hadn't seen in three years.

The red woman gasped. "Oh, my dear boy, I didn't know you were expecting guests!"

Ciel huffed. "That is because you weren't invited here in the first place."

Oh, so that's what the butler meant. "Would you like to meet in private, Lord Phantomhive?"

He shook his head. "No, there isn't any point in keeping a secret that everyone knows." He smirked. "Besides, there is no need for talking when I already know exactly where to go."


End file.
